Plow



R. C. CAUGHEY.

PLOW.

APPLICATION FILED JULY 31.1915. RENEWED HOV. 12,1921.

1 ,427,357, Patented Aug. 29, 1922.

8 SHEETS-SHEET 1- Elf/246721024 v Zia/5.5 Q

R. C. CAUGHEY.

PLOW.

APPLICATION FILED JULY 31,1915. RENEWED NOV. 12,1921.

Patented Aug. 29, 1922..

8 SHEETS$HEET 2.

R. C. CAUGHEY.

PLOW.

APPLICATION FILED JULY 31.1915. RENEWED N0v.12.1921.

Patent-ed Aug. 29, 1922.

8 SHEETS-SHEET 3.

R. C. CAUGHEY.

PLOW.

APPLICATION FILED JULY 31,1915- REhEWED NOV. 12,!921.

Patented Aug. 29, 1922..

8 SHEETSSHEET 4.

R. C. CAUGHEY.

RENEWED NOV-12,1921.

Patented Au 29, 1922.

g 2 s 4/, 1 n @Q m A o J 7/ m x2 w Ww M i a SHEETS-SHEET e.

E a dfzmezzl' WK? 1 4' :,W.7rv&;w uT I Patented Aug. 29, 1922.

PLOW.

R. c. CAUGHEY.

APPLICAEION FILED JULY 31, 19I5. RENEWED NOV. 12,1921.

w o 3 M s I R. C. CAUGHEY.

PLOW.

APPLICATION FILED JULY 3!. 1915 RENEWED NOV. 12, I921.

1 A27, 3 5'7, Patented Aug. 29, 1922.

8 SHEETSSHEET 7- R. C. CAUGHEY.

' PLOW.

APPLICATION FILED JULY 31,1915. RENEWED NOV. 12.192]. 1,427,357. Patente Aug. 29, 1922 a SHEETS-SHEET s.

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arr-1o STATES PATENT OFFICE.

ROBERT C. CAUGHEY, OF DIXON, ILLINOIS, ASSIGNOR, BY MESNE ASSIGNMENTS, TO

J. I. CASE THRESHING MACHINE COMPANY, OF

RATION OF WISCQNSIN.

Application filed July 31, 1915, Serial No. 42,965.

To all whom it map concern:

Be it known that I, ROBERT C. CAUGHEY, a citizen of the United States, residing at Dixon, in the county of Lee and State of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Plows, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to improvements in plows, and refers particularly to an improved power-lift tractor plow which, if desired, may be manufactured in comparatively small size so that if necessary the plow and tractor may be operated by a single person.

The object of the invention is to provide an improved, simple, economical and eflicient plow of the character described, the novel features of Which willbe more particularly pointed out hereafter.

In the drawings, which illustrate the application of my invention to a small power-lift tractor plow having three bottoms,-

Fig. 1 is a side elevation of the plow looking from the land side and with the bottoms in their operative positions;

Fig. 2 is a view similar to Fig, 1, showing the bottoms elevated into their inoperative position, the land wheel of the plow being cut away in order more. clearly to illustrate the mechanism;

Fig. 3 is a plan view of Fig. 1; a Fig. 4 is an enlargement of the left-hand end of Fig. 1, the land wheel having been cut away;

Fig. 5 is an enlargement of the righthand side of Fig. 1, showing the mechanism for elevating the rear end of the plow frame;

Fig.v 6 is an enlargement of a' portion'of F ig, 3;

Fig. 7 is a section taken on the line 7- -7 of F 1g. 3; Fig. 8 is a section taken on the line 88 of Fig. 6;

Fig. 9 is a section taken on the line 99.

of Fig. 6;

Fig. 10 is a section taken on the line 10-40 of Fig. 5; and

Fig. 11 is a fragmentary plan view of the.

rear end of the plow showing certain mechanism illustrated in Fig. 5.

Referring to the figures, it will be obof the served that the plow is furnished with a Specification of Letters Patent.

PLOW.

Patented Aug. 29, 1922. Renewed November 12, 1921. Serial No. 514,824.

22 Wl11Cl1,I'l1I1S in the furrow behind the' third bottom of the plow. As shown most clearly in Fig. 3, the curved plow beams 23 are relatively staggered and are con.- nected together by means ofrear braces, as shown at 24,-so that the plow beams. form an integral part of the frame work of the plow structure. The front ends of the first and second plow beams are joined together by across-piece 25, and the draft tackle or hitch connecting the plow to the tractor is applied to the two; perforated side members 26 secured to the said rear end. It should be understood that the plow may be equipped with rolling coulters or other devices, such, however, not being ihown, since they are not specifically claimed ereln.

In the front end of the plow frame are mounted the axles 27 and 28 for the land and furrow wheels, said axles being bent or cranked to form arms, as shown, in order to vary the distance of the center of the wheels from the level of the plow frame.

Theaxles 27 and 28 are'separately journaled in the frame, for a reason which will hereinafter appear.

The raising of the bottoms is effected entirelyby power,-that is to say, derived from the rotation of one the wheels (in this case the land wheel) as the plow is drawn over the surface of the ground.

'To this end I mount upon the hub 29 of the land wheel a sprocketwheel 30 which by means of a chain 31*p0sitively drives a sprocket wheel 32. Said sprocket wheel 32 normally rotates freely upon a shaft 33' by power or cord 37 which leads back from the tractor to the end of a lever 38 which is securely keyed to a small cranked shaft 39 also journaled in the mounting 34. The cranked end 40 of said shaft 39 carries a roller 41, said roller 41 in the normal position of the lever 38, being held in such relation with reference to the clutch that one of the fingers 42 or 43 will engage the same as the clutch tends to rotate. V

The fingers 42 and 43 extend outwardly at the side of the continuously rotating clutch drum 44, which is formed as a part of the sprocket wheel 32. The inner ends of said clutch fingers are pivoted upon fixed pins 45 and 45 and mounted in the side of the plate 46, the hub of which is keyed to the clutch shaft 33. Said fingers are also connected together to. move in unison by means of a small link 47 pivotally connected to the bell cranked ends 48 and 49 of said clutch fingers. The clutch finger 42 isformed with an auxiliary bell cranked end 50 to which is secured a coil tension spring 51, the other end thereof being attached to a pin 52 fixed in the side of the drum 44, so that the fingers 42 and 43 are urged in the direction of the open slots 52 and 53. When the shaft 39 is rotated by means of the lever 38, the roller 41 is moved out of the slot 52 or 53 and the clutch fingers 42 and 43 are rotated on their pivots by said spring 51, thereby causing a roller 54 pivota-lly carried on a right-angled extension 55 of the clutch finger 43 to be moved outwardly from the center of the drum 44. When the roller .54 is moved outwardly a sufficient distance, it engages one of the arcuate notches 56 formed in the inner periphery of the constantly rotating drum 44, and thereupon the plate 46 is caused to rotate with said drum.

Assuming that the plow is in the'position shown in Fig. 1 and that the tractioneer wishes to raise the bottoms into the position shown in Fig. 2, he gives a sharp pull upon the cord 37 and causes the lever 38 to move the roller 41 out of the slot 53 and thus clutches the sprocket wheel to the shaft 33 by the mechanism previously referred to. As

soon as the clutch commences to' rotate, the

cord 37 is released. The inner end of the shaft 33 is cranked, as shown at 57 in Fig. 6, the end thereof being pivotally connected at 58 to a link 59, the other end of which is pivotally secured at 60 (see Fig. 8) to the side of an adjustable lever 61 which ordinarily is locked into position to form, in effect, a part of the plow frame. It will-be observed by reference to Figs. 4 and 8 that the center ofthe shaft 33 is spaced apart a considerable distance from the center of the axle shaft 27, the bracket or mounting 34.. in efi'ect, constituting a crank on said shaft 27. It is manifest that, owing to the fact that said link 59 is fixed to the frame of the machine at 60, rotation of the shaft 33 will cause the center thereof to move towards or from the point 60 and thus rotate the shaft 27 in its bearings in the plow frame. The rotary movement of the shaft 27 will cause the lower crank arm to assume a more or less inclined position, the arrangement being such that when the roller 41 is in the slot 53, as shown in Fig. 4, the arm makes a minimum angle with the horizontal, and when the roller 41 is in the notch 52, the said arm approaches the vertical, as shown in Fig. 2. The effect, then, of a pull upon the cord 37 is to cause half a. revolution of the clutch when-the plow is moving, and thus to change the position of the axle 27 and cranked part thereof from that shown in Fig. 1 to that shown in Fig. 2, or vice versa, thus causing the front end of the plow frame to be elevated or depressed to raise or lower the bot toms. The roller 41 is caused to enter the notches 52 or 53 and trip the clutch after half a revolution of the latter by means of atension spring 63 (see Fig. 4), one end of which is attached to an arm 64 secured to the lever 38, the other end therof being fastened to the bent-up end 65 of a small bar 66 fixed to the mounting 34.

Owing to the fact that the two front wheels of the plow have their axes at different Levels when the plow is in operation, it is desirable to raise or depress said axes with reference to the plow frame a different amount when throwing the plows into or out of operation. For this reason, I prefer not to mount the furrow wheel 21 on the axle 27, but utilize a separate axle 28 therefor, the axles 28 and 27 being operatively connected together by a link 67. One end of said link 67 is pivoted at 68 to an arm 69 (see Figs.

6 and 8) keyed to the horizontal part of the shaft 27, the other end of said link 67 being pivotally secured at 70 to the side of the sector arm 71 which is normally clutched into engagement with the shaft 28. It is apparent that rotation of the shaft 27 through the link 67 will cause a corresponding rotation of the shaft 28 and a proportionate change in the relative inclination of the oblique part of said shaft 28, the arrangement being such that when the parts are in the position shown in Fig. 2. the axes of the shafts 27 and 28 are in the same horizontal plane, thereby maintaining the front of the plow, level. transversely.

By reference to Fig. 2 it will be noticed that the rear bottom is raised into substantially the same horizontal position as the forward bottoms. This is effected by mechanism connected with the rear end of the plow but operated by the clutch 36 simultaneously with. the raising of the front end of the plow. Referring to Figs. 4 and 6 it will be seen that the upper end of the mounting or bracket 34 carries adjacent the shaft 33 a small lug 72 which forms a pivotal connection for the front end of a long strap member 73 extending rearwardly of. the plow, its rear end being connected to the upper end of the lever 74 horizontally pivoted on the plow frame. To an intermediate point on said lever 74 is pivotally connected the front endof a link 75 which is connected to the lower end of a crank 76 formed integrally with a shaft 77 horizontally pivoted in amounting 78 carried on the rear plow beam. Said shaft 77 is bent twice at right angles in order to furnish a crank 79 which is arranged to pivot in a forked block 80, through the lugs of which 81 passes the vertical stem 82 of the rear axle. Said rear axle is rotatable in said lugs 81, its vertical position being defined by a collar 83 secured to the shaft 82 intermediate said lugs 81 by a set screw 84. In order to main 7 tainthe axle 82 vertical,the lower end thereof is rotatably supported in a housing 85. In order to permit relative vertical movements of said housing 85 with reference to' the mounting 78, said parts are pivotally connected together by a link 86 the ends of which 87 and 88 constitute parallel cranks journaled in said parts; the parts 77, 79, 87 and 88 thus forming, in effect, a system. of linkage causing only relative parallel movements of the end of the plow and rear axle 82. The mounting 85 is prevented from moving longitudinallyupon the shaft 82 by means of a lower fixed collar 89 and an upper collar 90 of special shape, for a purpose which will hereinafter appear.

The lower end of the plow frame is adj usted as to its operative or plowing position by means of a set screw 91 which passes through a lug 92 extending rearwardly of the bracket 78, said screw engaging the upper face of the lug 93 of the block 85. If the plow be moving along in operative position, as shown in Figs. 1, 4 and 5, and the clutch be thrown in'by pulling on the cord 37, the shaft 27 will be rotated, thereby rotating the shaft 28 and raising the front end of the plow into the position shown in Fig. 2. The strap member 73 will be dra wn forward, owing to the rotation of the point 72 around the pivotal center of the shaft 27. v The link 75 hence will also be drawn forward and will rotate-the shaft 77, causing the rear end of the plow to assume the position shown in dotted lines in Fig. 5, thus raising the rear end of the p-low frame from the ground.

The feature of raising both the rear and front ends of the plow at will by a simple pull upon the control cord, all other operations being entirely automatic, is an ex-v tremely valuable one for the reason that ifthe front end only of the plow were elevated from the ground, the rear bottom would not be sufliciently elevated to prevent trash from gathering. upon the point of the plow share. Such an arrangement also has other advantages which will be apparent to the skilled argiculturalist. For instance, it permits the rearwheel of the plow to be placed quite close-to the rear bottom, thus reducing the over-all length of the plow and rendering it much more simple to maneuver atthe end of the furrow. In addition, the bottoms being all of the same or substantially the same level, the swinging of the rear wheel on its vertical axis does not affect the clearance between the surface of the field and the lower edges of the bottoms.

I have stated that the lower end of the "plow frame is adjusted as to its plowing shown in Figs. 2, 3 and 5. In said figures,

7 5 represents a small bent strap member 119 (secured to the link 75 by the bolt 120, thereby making a fork in which the front end 121 of the rear half of the link 75 may be pivoted upon the pivot bolt 122. This joint in the link 75 causes the link 75 to assume a more or less bent position, as shown in Fig. 5 in full lines, whenever the rearwise movement of the link 73, due to the power lift mechanism, is more than sufficient to permit the rear end of the plow frame to descend into such position that the set screw 91 engages the block 85. When the hand levers are set for deep plowing a good deal of slack ,or lost motion is present in the link 75, which has the effect of delaylng the automatic raising of the rear end of the plow frame until the slack has been taken out of the link 75 by the operation of'the automatic power lift mechanism at the front end of the plow. In such a case, the front end of the plow frame will of course commence to ascend slightly ahead of the rear end of the plow frame, which, however, is not objeetionable but has a beneficial effect in causing the inclination of the bottoms to assist in raising them out of the ground, thereby taking part of the strain off the automatic face 95.

that the collar 90 is not circular but has a flat rear face 95 substantially at right-angles to the direction of movement of the plow. In the lower portion of the block 85 there is journaled upon ahorizontal axis 96 a U- shaped rock plate 97, the upper transverse portion of which engages said transverse At the rear of the journal block 85 there is also an integral rear extension 98 having an upwardly projecting lug 99 in which slides a thrust rod 100 the forward end of which engages the. transverse limb of the U-s'haped rock plate 97. Said thrustrod 100 is furnished with an integral collar 101 between which and the lug 99 is interposed a coil compression spring 102 which forces the thrust-rod against the rock plate 97 and holds the adjacent faces of said rock plate 97 and the collar 90 in intimate resilient engagement. It is manifest that so long as said faces are in engagement, which will be the case unless the rear wheel 22 be subjected to an unusual amount of trans verse pressure, for instance, in turning the plow at the end of the furrow, the wheel 22 will be maintained in a straight line in the direction of movement of the plow. Obviously, when swinging the plow at the end of the furrow, the wheel 22 is subjected to a large amount of transverse strain, and when this occurs the rear wheel swings into the dotted line position shown in Fig. 11 or a corresponding position on. the other side of the center line of the plow, thus bringing the rear wheel into the position which is most favorable for effecting a turning movement of the plow. In order to hold the said wheel 22 in the best position for turning the plow, I construct the collar 94 with a pair of additional lateral faces 103 and 104 with which the rock plate 97 cooperatesin the same manner as with the rear face 95. This arrangement permits me to back up the plow, if for any reason such a movement becomes necessary or desirable, the rear wheel remaining in its proper straight line position during said backing movement.

Under ordinary circumstances the adjustment'of the plow is not' changed during the plowing of a givenpiece of land. However, if it-becomes desirable or necessary, the depth or setting of the plows can be altered by means of the levers 105 and 61. The lever 105 is'for the purpose of adjusting the height of the plow frame or the depth of the plows (the same thing) on the land wheel side of the implement. As has previously been stated, the link 59 (see Fig. 4) connects the end of a crank 57 to the plow frame, but the end of said crank 57 is adjustable with reference to the frame by means of the lever 61. To this end, I mount on the front end of the plow frame a toothed sectorelement 106 with which cooperates a dog 107 (see Fig. 4) sliding in a block or strap 108 secured to the side of the lower end of said lever 61. When necessary to adjustthe position of said lever 61, the pivoted hand piece 109 is pressed, thereby raising the said dog through the agency of the wire 110 and the bell crank lever 111. Said parts are returned to normal position with the dog 107 in engagement with one of the sector notches by means of a spring (not shown). It is evident that when it is desired to lower the plow points so as to give a deeper furrow, the lever 61 must be moved into its rearmost position, thus forcing back the clutch shaft 33 around the pivotal center of the shaft 27 and flattening out the inclination of the oblique part of said shaft. If, on the other hand, it be desired to raise the bottoms so as to plow to a less depth, the lever 61 must be pulled forwardly, thereby straightening up the crank arm 62 and elevating the front end of the plow. The use of the lever 61 is effective in causing the vertical movement of each side of the front end of the plow, but inasmuch as the furrow wheel and the land wheel are at different elevations and so are desirably differently geared, I preferably employ a second lever 105 for independently adjusting the relative height of the furrow side of the front end of the plow. Accordingly,

I key the lower end of said lever 105 to the that the lever 105 and sector arm 71 are furnished with the usual cooperating dog and notches whereby the lever 105 may be locked in any desired position.

In order to lighten the work of the lifting mechanism, I prefer to employ a pair of springs 112 and 113 (see Fig. 6) which are connected between the cross-frame 25 and the lever 105 and the arm 69, these springs being normally under considerable tension and tending to cause rotation of the shafts 27 and 28 and the consequent elevation of the bottoms.

It will be seen that the part referred to as a swinging rotary member (in this case the rotary shaft 33 with the crank 57) is caused to move bodily, by the link, relatively toward and from the bearing point of the link with a resulting movement vertically of the frame. The bearing point .of the link, though adjustable, is normally fixed. And it is preferable to have the position of this bearing point governed by the depthcontrolling lever so that when the lever is shifted, it not only affects the positions of the plow bodies relative to the ground surface, but also affects the positions of the link and the frame relatively to each other-. The part against which the link normally bears durthe power actuated movements of the power lifting devices, the latter commencing their action and moving through their several cycles while theflevers remain stationary. The latter are always readily accessible to the operator standing on the platform of the tractor, and as they are not swung through any parts of'thei'r arcs of travel while the power apparatus is lifting or lowering'the frame, these levers can be so shaped and related to the other parts that their handles, under all ordinary adjustments, project toward said platform and are'positioned respectively in closely neighboring lines under different adjustments. a

I It should be understood that many of the structural details may be changed or modified considerably without sacrificing the benefits or advantages of the invention or departing from the spirit thereof. I therefore do not wish to be limited, except as specified in the appended claims.

I claim-- I 1. In a power lift plow, the combination of a multiple beam plow frame, a forward and downward projecting toggle crank rotatably mounted in said frame, a ground Wheeljournaled on the swinging end of said crank, a member rotatably mounted on said crank on an axis parallel with and spaced apart from the crank axis and the wheel axis, driving means connecting said wheel and member and including a clutch mounted on and swinging with said'c'rank for effecting successive, intermittent, unidirectional rotary movements of said member, and

means operated by said member for swingmg 1t and rotating said crank in said frame 'to effect relative-vertical movement of. said wheel and the front end of said frame.

2. In a power lift plow, the combination of a multiple beam plow frame, a .forward and downward projecting toggle crank rotatably mounted in'said frame, a ground crank in said frame to effect relative vertical movement of said wheel and the front end of said frame, a whole revolution of said member constituting a complete cycle of raising and loweringmovements of the plow frame.

3, In a power lift plow, the combination of a multiplebeam plow frame, a shaft journaled in said frame, a forward and down- Ward projecting toggle crank on said shaft, a driving wheel journaled on the swinging end of said crank, a bodily swinging shaft member rotatably mounted on said crank on an axis spaced from the shaft axis and the wheel axis and parallel thereto, driving means connecting said wheel and member and including a trippable clutch for effecting intermittent, successive, unidirectional rotary movements of said member, and 'a link connecting said frame with said last-namedmember, whereby rotary movement of. said member will result in alternately raising or lowering the front end of said frame relative to said wheel.

4. In a power lift plow, the combination of a multiple beam plow frame, a shaft j ournaled in said frame, a forward and downward projecting toggle crank on said shaft, a driving or lowering movement of the front end of said frame, relative to said wheel, a raising or lowering movement constituting a complete cycle, said link being adjustably connected to said frame whereby the depth of the plow may be regulated.

' 5..In a power lift plow, the combination of a multiple-beam plow frame, a forward and downward projecting toggle crank ro-- tatably mounted on said frame, a ground wheel supported on the swinging end of said crank, a member rotatably mounted on said crank on an axis parallel with and spaced apart frbm the-crank axis, driving means adapted to optionally connect said wheel and said member and to automatically disconnect them at predetermined times and swinging with said crank for effecting successive, intermittent, unidirectional, rotary movements of said member, and a link, pivotally' connected to said member, and arranged to transmit lifting force to the frame at a point normally fixed but a j Swble, for swinging-said member and rotating said crank to effect relative vertical movement of said wheel and the front end of said frame.

Gmln a power lift plow the combination of a multiple-beam plow frame, a forward and downward projectingtoggle crank ro-. tatably mounted on said frame, a ground wheel supported on the-swinging end of said crank, a bodily swinging member rotatably mounted on said crank on an axis parallel with and spaced apart from the crank axis, driving means adapted to optionally connect said wheel and said member and to automatically disconnect them at predetermined times and to swing with said member for effecting successive, intermittent, unidirectional, rotary, movements of said member, a link pivotally connected to said member for swinging it and rotating said crank in said frame to effect vertical movements of the frame, and a manual lever normally fixed on the frame for adjusting the link and the frame relatively, and for varying the depth of plowing.

7. In a power lift plow, the combination of a multiple-beam plow frame, a shaft journaled insaid frame, a forward and downward projecting toggle crank on said shaft, a driving ground wheel supported on the swinging end of said crank, a bodily swinging intermittingly rotary member r0- tatably mounted on said crank on an axis spaced from the shaft axis and parallel and a link adjustably connecting the frame with said last-named member, whereby rotary movement of said member will result in alternately raising and lowering the front end of said frame relative to said wheel.

8. In a power lift plow, the combination of a multiple-beam plow frame, a shaft journaled in said frame, a forward and downward projecting toggle crank on said shaft, a driving wheel supported on the swinging end of said crank, a bodily swinging rotary power-transmitting member mounted on said crank on an axis spaced from the shaft axis and parallel thereto, driving means connecting said wheel and member and including a trippable clutch for effecting intermittent, successive, unidirectional rotary movements of said member, a crank on said member, and a link connecting said frame with said lastsnamed crank, whereby rotary movement of said member will result in raising or' lowering movement of the front end of said frame, relative to said wheel, said link being adjustably connected to said frame whereby the depth of the plow may be regulated.

ROBERT C. CAUGHEY.

\Vitnesses:

F. D. STEPHAN, E. C. DUTGHER. 

